PR Crisis Management Uniondale NY

PR crisis management is a specialized area of public relations work in which the professional works to put out image fires and deal with scandals. These professionals are the heavy-hitters of the public relations world, and their jobs are stressful.

A professional can help your business overcome an image crisis, but you need to make sure you are hiring the right PR professional to deal with the problem. Some public relations personnel are more likely to deal well with problems related to legal scandals. These professionals know how to deal with legal media and can create buzz to get public opinion on your side. Others deal more with moral or ethical crises. Politicians and athletes often use this type of crisis management personnel.

Before you hire anyone, ask about his or her record. While some information may be confidential, you can get a gist of the types of cases this person has worked before. Also, you can get a feel for the personality of the professional public relations worker you are hiring. This person will need to present an open, but firm image to people involved in the situation. You want someone who exudes warmth, but gives the solid understanding that her word is the final say.

Hiring a PR crisis management person may be a long-term commitment, in which you will pay a retainer for services whenever needed. This arrangement also could be short term. The setup depends on your needs, but look to find someone whose work arrangements are flexible to help you weather any public relations storms you may face.

Should you find yourself facing a public relations problem without a professional on hand to help you deal with the issue, you will need to learn quickly to catch up and handle the crisis on your own. Crisis management involves two factors. First, you have to decide how much information to give out. In some cases, people opt to give full access, while others hold back and issue terse statements. Looking at your situation, decide which scenario plays out best with the media and your current and future customers. Once you make a decision, stick to it. Let others know you are firm in your resolve.

The second issue is to get through the crisis with people on your side. Crisis management does not mean you are making the problem go away. Rather, it is an indication you are riding out the problem. Your goal is to come out with your reputation intact. Should you face a work crisis, such as tainted goods or poor labor practices, let the public and your employees know quickly what steps you are taking. Watch what public relations professionals say and model that behavior. A public relations campaign is to get people on your side, whether that means believing you are innocent, or believing you are doing everything in your power to fix problems.

PR crisis management teams exist for a few reasons. The first is to help companies deal with rumors. Though rumors may prove to be false in the end, they still affect the perception people have of a company. This problem is especially true in entertainment-type environments. Sports figures find themselves mired in allegations of misconduct, and it follows them whether it is true or not. Similarly, a small restaurant accused of selling alcohol to minors will have a poor image even if those claims prove false. Crisis management is there to handle these issues to keep them from becoming more widespread problems.

PR crisis management teams also work to make sure when there are problems that the client's position is heard. One strategy may be to issue a short statement indicating regret or remorse without giving many details. Still another possibility is to set up interviews with media members who will be sympathetic. The various crisis management strategies available help present a new angle on the current crisis.

Finally, PR crisis management is about doing damage control. Sometimes, a client did do something wrong, and then the job of crisis management is to keep the damage to a minimum by showing that the person has another, better side or use other techniques to move the focus away from the crisis.